


Only Logical

by Rulerofyouall



Category: Star Trek: Alternate Original Series (Movies)
Genre: Bottom Spock, Hurt Spock, M/M, Mpreg, Multi, Pon Farr, Post-Star Trek Beyond, Protective Bones, Protective Jim, Xenophobia
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-09
Updated: 2018-09-21
Packaged: 2019-02-12 12:09:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 18,113
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12958887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rulerofyouall/pseuds/Rulerofyouall
Summary: Jim, Bones, and Spock getting together was 'only logical' after the events at Altamid, but when the Enterprise is finally fixed, Spock begins to notice differences in his actions and routine. As it turns out, he had a much different role to play in his upcoming Pon Farr than he originally realized, leading to him getting pregnant by the end of it. Will Jim, Bones, and Spock be able to keep both their jobs and the offspring once they begin to be harassed by xenophobic admirals and crew members?





	1. Pon Farr

**Author's Note:**

> I don't own anything, and sorry if I write anyone out of character. I've never written with these characters before, and I'm trying it out.
> 
> Sorry in advance because I suck at writing accents and sex scenes.

Logic dictates that what must happen for the good of the whole should happen even if it undermines the demands of the few. It was only logical then to maintain his current functions despite the nagging thoughts in Spock's head, right?

After Altamid, Bones and Jim had come to Spock while he was still recovering on Yorktown with a proposition. They wished for the three of them to join together in a union that the humans referred to as 'dating.' Spock, to their relief, agreed with their arguments, citing that it was 'only logical.' That was four months, twenty-six days, fourteen hours, and forty-seven minutes ago. Now, the three of them had been reinstalled with the surviving members of their crew back on board the Enterprise.

They were traveling to a distant quadrant to map an uncharted section of the galaxy with 10.67 days until their arrival. Throughout their voyage, there had been no attacks, no malfunctions, no distress signals that would heed the Enterprise's swift movement towards their target destination at Warp 5.

The relative tranquility seemed to be broken now at least for Spock. He carefully monitored the drastic rising and falling of his own cortical levels and the growing unbalance in his serotonin levels. Unfortunately, it would be illogical to curse about the timing of his obviously upcoming Pon Farr.

There were, however, differences in what he was experiencing then what his father, Sarek, had described. Could this be due to his hybrid physiology? It was possible though Spock found himself yearning for that not to be the case, so he would not be scorned by the Vulcans yet again for his differences.

How illogical of him to think that way.

"-pock? Spock?" His attention was brought to the voice of one of his t'hy'la, the Captain.

The Vulcan turned his head in the direction of the voice and found that the majority of the bridge crew were staring at him in confusion and worry. Bones, who was on the bridge and had been most likely speaking to Jim, stared at him with an expression of concern mirrored only by the Captain.

"Yes, Captain?" Spock spoke professionally as if nothing was wrong.

The Captain bit his lip. "You okay, Mr. Spock? I've been calling your name for a little while now."

"I am functioning adequately, Captain." He reassured him. While he was functioning adequately, it became apparent that he was not functioning optimally.

"Are you sure? I've never seen you space out like that before." Jim continued nervously.

Spock found himself oddly irritated at the Captain for his continued interrogation, and he glared at him. "I would not have spoken if I was not sure."

The human captain was momentarily stunned into silence by his First Officer's out of character behavior.

"I don't like this, Jim." The CMO spoke up. "Let me look at him." The Vulcan stiffened under the watchful eyes of the crew.

"Do it, Bones. Spock, let McCoy check over you; that is an order." Jim said finally.

Spock found himself glaring at the approaching doctor as well despite the logical part of his brain telling him that he was going against all Surakian principles.

"Let's just get some of the basics out here, shall we?" McCoy's voice was laced with his concern. "Have you been exposed to anything that would mess with that green blood of yours? Eaten anything funny?"

"I do not believe so, doctor."

"Exposed to any radiation?"

"None that the crew wouldn't have picked up on and also been affected by."

Bones was picking at straws as he thought about the things that the Vulcan was doing differently now than before. All that came up was the relationship he had started and what they were all doing when off-duty. "Are you pregnant?"

A short laugh came from Scotty's direction. "Come on, lad, that cannae be a serious concern, now can it?"

The doctor ignored the Scotsman for now and focused on Spock.

"I don't believe so." The Vulcan answered after a moment of hesitation.

The laugh became a cough. "Wait, Mr. Spock can get-"

The doctor whirled around and saw that the rest of the crew was also in a bewildered state, including Jim.

"That is something I probably should have known." Jim bit his lip and forced himself to look into the screen.

McCoy was starting to get frustrated. "Well, do ya know what's wrong with you or do I gotta drag your green ass down to Medical?"

"I am aware of my state. There is nothing you can do medically nor any prior knowledge you can draw upon for it." The First Officer responded.

Jim swiveled back to him instantly. "What do you mean you're aware of your state? If something's wrong with you, why didn't you go to McCoy?"

"Jim, I think this would best be discussed in my office." Bones enunciated.

The Captain looked distracted. "Yes, of course. Scotty, you have the con." He leapt out of his chair and met the other two in the elevator.

The three of them were alone in the elevator, yet none of them spoke to one another until they reached the office.

"So you can get pregnant? Wow, I did not know that. Probably should have been using a condom-" Jim started conversationally.

"You should have been using a condom regardless, Jim, or did you forget all those lectures on safe sex you got?" Bones glared at him. "And you should have remembered to, Mr. High-and-Mighty and made him use one." He jabbed Spock with his finger.

The Captain sighed. "What aren't you telling us, Spock? You do know you can tell either of us anything, right?"

"It is not something humans experience. All Vulcans experience it however, and it is a deep and secret part of our culture. You would have no knowledge of it." Spock answered him.

The doctor tried to identify anything that he could be talking about but drew a blank. "Is it life-threatening?"

"Yes. I was going to breach that topic with the both of you tonight; I expect that I will be dead within ten days if something is not done." The Vulcan spoke coolly.

"Spock, you're really starting to scare me. What are you talking about?" Jim's eyes held all his emotions.

McCoy frowned. "Could you show some emotion, you hobgoblin?" He scowled. "Telling us that he'll be dead in ten days if nothing is done and expecting us to be cool with it. Vulcans, I swear-"

"It is the Pon Farr." Spock glanced at the other two. "The Vulcan mating season."

Jim raised an eyebrow, trying not to laugh. "Don't try to be funny, Spock. This is serious."

"I'm not attempting to be humorous, Captain."

"Jim." He corrected.

"Yes." The Vulcan agreed. "It will be my first though right now I am uncertain as to what I will require during it."

The Captain stood there for a little bit. "Vulcans have a fuck or die thing going on? Damn, that's hot."

Spock spared him a confused glance. "That is why I was going to breach the subject later. It would be inappropriate to ask either of you to engage in sexual congress with me in front of the crew."

"No, I get it." Bones reassured.

"Well, I don't." Jim crossed his arms.

The Vulcan put his hands behind his back. "I ask that you both take eight days of leave with me." He stoically stated.

"Eight days of sex?" McCoy nearly groaned at the thought. As much as he loved his hobgoblin, eight days of sex was a lot to ask of a man his age. Jesus, how the hell were the three of them supposed to do this?

"Eight days of sex!" Jim was excited and started vibrating. "I'm in. I'm totally in. The three of us can take medical leave for this, right?"

"Technically yes, since we are helping cure a life-threatening illness." The doctor found that he wouldn't mind having a little over a week off from being in the Medical Wing surrounded by mostly idiots who thought it was a good idea to stick their head in the bottoms of rockets or to test their experiments on themselves (the last time Spock decided to do that it had gotten nasty).

Spock dipped his head. "I'm gratified."

"If my penis falls off, I'm blaming you." McCoy groaned. "How much longer do we have until you need it?"

The Vulcan flicked his gaze over to the doctor. "Eight hours and fifty-two minutes."

"Great." The doctor sighed. "Well, we'll need to prepare if we're going to stay in for eight days. I'm guessing your not going to need sex the entire time?"

Spock gave a negative. "I will be too exhausted to do so at some points. Those times are meant for resting and maintaining proper nutrient levels."

"So we'll need to have a fully-functioning replicator and a lot of condoms." McCoy listed.

"A negative for the latter, Leonard. The use of condoms would severely inhibit my biological imperative. My body would react the same in those circumstances as simply not having sex at all. It would kill me." Spock corrected.

The doctor looked like he was getting a migraine.

"See, Bonesies?" Jim grinned like a hyena. "I was doing good by avoiding the condoms."

Bones looked up. "So you're telling me that we're all going to be having condom-less sex for eight days?"

"Affirmative." Spock confirmed this.

"Jesus," Leonard put his hand on his face and sighed.

"So," Jim crossed his legs. "You going to want to be on top or on bottom?"

The Vulcan raised his eyebrow. "I am uncertain of that at the moment."

"That's okay I guess." The Captain spun around in his chair a bit.

Bones eventually withdrew his hand. "You, Jim, go get us the leave. I'll be damned if the Admiralty doesn't question us on why all three of us needed it at one time afterwards. It was hard enough to get them to agree to letting the three of us share a room despite whatever 't'hy'la bond' and other Vulcan crap we got going on right now."

"I thought you were a doctor not the Captain." Jim pouted but sat down and did as he was told anyway.

He pointed to Spock. "You, I want to examine you. See what's going on in that weird body of yours." He directed Spock to a private examination table. "Lay down on that."

The First Officer complied and stared at his other t'hy'la. "T'hy'la, this is illogical." Jim snorted at the nearby table.

"Logical, schmogical. Boo hoo. I don't care." McCoy ran a scan on him. "But tell me how it's supposed to look anyway."

"Differences in cortical and serotonin levels are common." Spock lightly explained.

Leonard raised an eyebrow. "It seems like somethings up with your uterus too." He squinted. "It looks like an your body is quickly throwing together an endometrium, or a uterine lining."

Jim muttered something about how his lover had 'an entire organ system he didn't know about.'

"That is sometimes seen as well." Spock accepted this. "It is generally a signal that the Vulcan in question will need to be on the 'bottom' as Jim so aptly put."

Bones groaned. "So let me get this: we're not using condoms, which is bad enough by the way in case either of you idiots were wondering, but now the only one of us who can get pregnant is gonna be on bottom? Jesus, the Admirals are gonna skin us alive!"

Later on, Spock didn't bother going to dinner. He knew that his emotions were uncontrolled and way too volatile at this point to bother going down; plus, his remaining controls were being slowly demolished by the growing ache in his middle and the hormones in his brain. Besides, Vulcans did not require as much sustenance as humans did.

"Why the hell did you not show up for dinner, hobgoblin?" McCoy demanded, marching in followed by an excited Kirk, who put a lock on the door almost immediately.

The Vulcan, for once, found himself unable to enunciate words properly and just groaned, lying supine on the bed with his arms covering his eyes.

"Lights 20%." Jim demanded at once before approaching his t'hy'la. "You wanna go first or shall I?" He asked.

"Depends on what Spock wants." Bones shrugged. "If you're going first, I'm going to shower though."

"I don't have a preference." The Vulcan mumbled as he began to uncomfortably shift.

The Captain smirked. "All right then. The dibs is mine, and it is good." He ripped off his shirt as the heat of the room began to affect him.

"Jim," Spock groaned. "I would be increasingly gratified if you were to place your gonad into my own."

Jim laughed. "Only you could make that sound sexy." He tore off his clothes and threw them onto the floor before proceeding to do the same to his t'hy'la's.

Spock responded and bucked up to meet his lover. Words were mostly lost with him now as he growled, and his dick slowly but surely emerged from its penile sheath.

"Look at you." The Captain marveled for a bit.

The First Officer roughly took hold of Jim's hand in a Vulcan kiss and hissed lowly. "Get inside me now."

"You're needy; I like it." Jim fetched some lube.

"That will not be necessary as the Vulcan body generates its own lubrication during Pon Farr. " Spock batted it away.

"Really?" He went to go look. "So it does! I can deal with that. I can definitely deal with that."

Hell, Bones knew it was going to be a long week, but he also knew that it was going to be a good week too. Besides, it was only logical to do this, right?


	2. What the Hell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pon Farr continues, but the Admiralty wants to know why the Enterprise's Captain, First Officer, and Chief Medical Officer are all taking leave at one time.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own nothing in this story, and I apologize if I write anyone out of character or if I mess up accents.

"I can't believe that tuckered the hobgoblin out." McCoy put his shirt back on as he stared at his nearly comatose lover.

Jim looked up to the southern doctor. "Well, to be fair, he has been awake for a while, and we have been doing this for a while."

"Yeah, but I assumed he would pass out after you went." The CMO responded.

Kirk cocked an eyebrow. "Are you saying that sex with me is more exhilarating, exhausting, and energetic than sex with you?"

Leonard grumbled. "No, it's just more boring with you." He picked up his PADD and looked at some of the reports that automatically synced up after he went on leave. Everything in Sickbay appeared to be in order, but one idiotic engineer burnt himself fixing a fuse box.

Jim pouted. "I don't know." He laid down next to Spock. "You coming?"

"Give me a second, will ya?" Bones found a pair of boxers and put them on despite not being sure of who they belonged to.

"You hardly have to bother, Bones. We're just sleeping for now; there's still a lot to come." The Captain grinned. "I never thought I'd get off for eight days of sex."

The doctor snorted before laying down on the other side of the Vulcan. "Wait until the Admiralty hears about this."

"They don't know about this Pon Farr thing Spock has going on." Kirk argued.

"Jesus, Jim, they're certainly going to notice the three of us taking eight days off for 'medical reasons.'" Bones scowled.

Jim understood now. "What do you think they are going to say?"

"They'll definitely want an explanation, Jim." The doctor looked over to him.

"Well, then, we can say it was just for medical reasons." The Captain responded. "It's legit. You have the results of Spock's physical."

Bones raised an eyebrow. "Do ya actually think they give a damn, Jim? I've seen the way some of those Admirals look at and talk to Spock."

"Me too." Kirk was suddenly overcome with sorrow. "But it's not like they can deny actual medical proof though, right?"

Leonard shook his head. "Technically. But that won't save our asses."

"Quarantine?" Jim offered. "We could say that we need to be quarantined to make sure we don't have it or contract it."

"Maybe. But they might know that this Pon-whatever effects the hobgoblins only." Bones snarled. "Plus, if that were the case, we'd have to quarantine everyone who has come into contact with Spock recently."

The Captain held himself up at his elbows. "Well, maybe this 'illness' isn't something that can be passed around like the flu."

"Jim, what the hell are you saying?"

"I'm saying that we could make this into some sort of STD!" Kirk fired back.

Leonard shook his head. "I can't diagnose him with something that doesn't exist, Jim! I might as well diagnose him with Andorian blepharoma. And what the hell would they say if we told them we could be in danger of having an STD? Jim, they don't like our relationship enough as it is!"

Jim's eyes softened.

"I know." Bones forced himself to calm down. "They could force us onto different ships, demote us all, ground us forever." He didn't admit that he wouldn't be too mad at the last one since space was too dangerous for him, but the doctor knew that his human lover had a lot of feelings on this topic.

"Then, what are we supposed to tell them?" The Captain looked dazed.

"To hell if I know. You're the one who is supposed to not believe in no-win scenarios." The doctor gestured violently.

Kirk perked up. "You're right!"

"I usually am." Leonard responded, raising an eyebrow.

"So, no STD. Great. I think Spock would have actually killed me if I told the Admiralty he had an STD anyway." Jim rubbed his neck in remembrance of the last time his t'hy'la tried to kill him. Those were easy times.

Spock subconsciously rolled onto his side in his sleep. Jim always found this amusing. He always fell asleep like a Vulcan would: straight and flat on his back, but as time went on, he would move into a position that wasn't so.

"Honesty is the best policy, right?" Jim asked after a moment of thought.

Bones shrugged. "I don't know, Jim. I'm a doctor, not a diplomat. Ask Nyota."

"But if this is such a big secret to Vulcans, surely they wouldn't appreciate us talking about it to the Admiralty?" The Captain vocalized.

"I don't know! Ask Spock that one."

"Just thinking out loud, Bones."

Leonard rolled his eyes. "Jeez, and I thought ya wanted us to sleep."

Jim hummed. "I guess this could wait until morning..."

It couldn't wait until morning. Since they were so far out of contact with the nearest starbase at this point, it would take approximately two days for the news of their leave to reach Starfleet, but the Captain himself couldn't find peace without resolving the issue. How did he balance honesty, the need for them to stay together and hopefully unpunished, and such sacred and secret cultural matters?

Starfleet almost never came across a species as secretive and enigmatic as the Vulcans. They had many facets to their culture; one always came behind the other. It was impossible to comprehend it all unless you were in fact a Vulcan that had grown up there.

Briefly and with a heavy heart, Jim wondered how the Vulcan culture would sustain itself following their planet's destruction. He had no doubt that they would try their best to preserve the key components, but things were definitely going to change, right? He allowed for a moment of loss.

How would he deal with this?

Should he just say that it was due to the Vulcan's natural biological functions? He hoped that would suffice, but he knew that the Admiralty would want to know more. They would want to know what is causing the best First Officer in Starfleet to succumb to 'petty' and 'trivial' biological needs. They would want to know more, and he'd have to tell them that it was related to his reproductive system.

The reproductive system of a Vulcan was generally a mystery to the general public, which was why no one but McCoy knew that Spock could actually get pregnant. Despite this, the Admiralty would have easy access to such information and demand an explanation. Hell, Jim fully expected them to equate this to a similar human condition and say that both Spock and them could work if human females worked while they were menstruating. The Captain had huge amounts of respect for women's ability to work while being plagued by cramps and bleeding, but unfortunately, Pon Farr was not the same thing at all.

His Vulcan did not appear to be practically functional at the moment. He knew that Spock would not have done well during his Pon Farr if he were to remain on the bridge or in the Science Wing, and he would have succumbed to death if they had to do that.

Which, a naughty section of Jim's brain whispered, the Admiralty probably wanted. There had been a few good admirals that they had come into contact with over the years, but unfortunately, most of the ones that held all the power were not good at all. They looked down on his Vulcan lover as inferior since he was not a human. They believed themselves elevated, above him not due to their higher status in Starfleet but due to the red blood that ran through their veins.

The Admiralty would not accept this answer and demand that they return to work, and damn, Jim would want to punch them really bad. They had been waiting to jump at any mistake to demote Spock or kick him out of Starfleet or imprison him. Those admirals did not like that he, a Vulcan, was the best First Officer and Chief Science Officer Starfleet had to offer, doing better than the other human ones.

They would take this brief period of weakness to ruin Spock's career and probably his life. Because where would he go if he were forced to leave? Would he remain on Earth? Not likely. He would most likely travel to New Vulcan and live amongst a different group of people who mainly looked down on him as an inferior being due to who his parents were. He was looked down over here for not being human, and he was looked down over there for not being Vulcan. Spock could never win.

But the crew of the Enterprise would stand by him. Jim knew for a fact that Spock had family in everyone here even if he didn't know it. They would all jump to defend their First Officer and repudiate the Admiralty for their backwards views. Hell, he could imagine certain individuals compiling a lot of evidence to expose the Admiralty.

And if that happened, Jim knew that the Admiralty would most likely claim that the Enterprise had gone rogue, and he, for one, would support that if it meant ensuring his t'hy'la's safety.

His thoughts were interrupted by the very person he was thinking about. The Captain felt a brief poke to get his attention silently since the Vulcan was well aware that Bones would get cranky if they woke him up before he woke up naturally.

"Hey, Spock." Jim smiled a bit.

"What troubles you, t'hy'la?" Spock arched one of his eyebrows.

"Just thinking about what the Admiralty will think about us taking so many days off." As he was staring at his lover, he could sense that the Vulcan too was apprehensive about how the Admiralty viewed him for his genetic background.

The Vulcan answered after a moment. "They would have to receive an explanation."

"Yes, but you said that Pon Farr was too secretive to talk about."

Spock nodded groggily. "It is a very sacred part of my culture, Jim, but they would need some reason to excuse us. Be honest, be truthful, but don't be complete."

"What should I omit?" The Captain asked desperately. "Come on, Spock; you gotta help me."

"That is ultimately for you to decide, but may I suggest you omit the sacred parts? Speak of only the things they already know of; do not introduce new topics." Spock suggested. "Doing so would lead to negative retaliation to us and my entire species for not informing them of such things."

Jim furrowed his eyebrows. "But members of the Federation can have sacred and secret cultural things and not be harassed by Starfleet to tell them what they are."

"That does not matter, Jim." The Vulcan finally noticed his curled up position and straightened into one more appropriate for a Vulcan. "I suggest you remember history. Now that Vulcan is gone, there is nothing stopping them from crushing my species."

"I won't let that happen."

"One man cannot do much."

"The entire ship won't let that happen." Jim spoke confidently.

Spock shook his head. "There are those onboard the Enterprise-"

"There are some xenophobes on the Enterprise? Have they been harassing you?" Jim blurted out.

"...This would be better discussed later." The Vulcan looked incredibly human in that moment. "Sleep, t'hy'la." He reached out to both of his human lovers with intent to hold a weak mental link while asleep.

Upon noticing the hand, Jim smiled. "Come here, you." The Captain enveloped his First Officer in his arms, and Spock couldn't say he was that irritated by it. Though Vulcans don't get irritated. No. Never.

The morning came all to fast. Spock's moment of lucidity was gone, and he was back to how he was before.

"Dibs!" Jim was way too cheerful that morning. At least that was Bones's opinion. That kid was way too cheerful every damn morning they were in space, unaware to the fact that their hull could be leaking or life support system's failing.

Bones remained next to his lovers, trying to go to sleep.

It didn't work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments make me happy. :)  
> Sorry if this chappie is shorter than usual; I am really busy.


	3. The Admiralty Awaits

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jim gets a message back from Starfleet, and they want to rendezvous at the nearest starbase.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own anything, so sorry if I write anyone out of character or mess up their accents.

Jim glared at his PAD as he brushed his teeth. It was early in the morning; no one else was awake, not even his Vulcan who was recovering from his Pon Farr. It was nice waking up and being able to stare at both of his slumbering lovers in the morning, neither of them conscious or stressed out by the workings of the Enterprise.

It had been a long eight days, but surprisingly enough, they hadn't heard back from Starfleet yet. He supposed that they needed time to discuss what to do with them, but now, they had made contact again.

What the hell was he supposed to say to them? Sure, he supposed that he probably should actually look at their message first, but he already knew what it would basically say. And Jim most definitely would not like what it said to him.

But honestly, who could blame him? Certainly not anyone on the alpha shift at least; what Spock had told him worried him. Had any member of his crew done anything that would require a court martial? He hoped not.

A tiny little voice that sounded like Spock in his head told him that hoping was illogical.

The alpha shift would understand though. Hell, he had heard Uhura and Scotty complaining about the frosty glances and cold shoulders Spock was on the receiving end on during their last meeting. Sulu and Chekov had tried to retaliate by given the admirals the cold shoulder, but none of them paid them enough attention to notice. For that, Jim was proud of them for. Not a lot of people would stand up to the Admiralty even if no one noticed their actions.

He knew that Spock would always have a family in those people. Family did not end in biological ties. Sure, there was the family you were technically related to, but there was also the family composed of the chosen few. And to him, that family was certainly much stronger than his own. He did not choose to have Winona Kirk as a mother, yet that was what he got anyway. He was aware that his life would have been a lot different had his father survived, but without him, his mother simply had problems coping.

Which led to more problems.

He hadn't chosen Frank either, but his mother did. Frank was an asshole; he thought Jim was too bright for his age, too weird.

And even if his mother chose him, Jim knew that Frank would definitely never be a part of his family.

His chosen family were his closest friends on the Enterprise. Spock and McCoy, Sulu and Chekov, Scotty and Uhura, the works. He chose that family, so he knew that they would always have his back. And he would always have theirs. They all had a close relationship, so if the Admiralty decided to stick its nose in and mess with Spock's life, he knew that they would all have his back at least.

He wished that more people would, but Spock's comment about the crew was still bothering him. If he was on the receiving end of unfair xenophobic treatment, why did he not report it? Spock had always been a stickler for the rules, and showing distaste for someone based off of their heritage was certainly against the rules. So why was Spock only talking about this now?

Maybe he hadn't meant to. That thought haunted Jim for a while. He knew that his Vulcan lover had been especially vulnerable this past week due to Pon Farr. It was entirely possible that he had slipped and revealed that to Jim on accident. If that was the case, Jim was grateful for that accident. Who knows how long this could have gone on undetected otherwise?

Hell, he and McCoy really needed to sit down and talk to Spock about that. The Captain knew that it was probably due to his belief in 'the needs of the many outweighing the needs of the few.' It always seemed to spiral down to that, and if Spock had decided that those crewmembers satisfied the majority's needs more than stopping their xenophobic attitudes would, the Vulcan would let it be.

He finished brushing his teeth and quickly put on a clean uniform. While McCoy had forced Spock to take one extra day off to recuperate from his Pon Farr, he had not allowed Jim to do the same. He was expected up on the bridge shortly, but first, he decided that he would look at the message.

_To: Cpt. James T. Kirk of the U.S.S. Enterprise_

_Subject: Medical Leave_

_We, the Admiralty, would like to inquire as to the reasons behind the eight day long medical leave of Cpt. James Kirk and Dr. Leonard McCoy and the nine day long medical leave of Cmdr. S'chn T'gai Spock. We hope you understand that while we would normally not question the Chief Medical Officer's opinion, it is concerning that the Captain, the First Officer/Chief Science Officer, and the Chief Medical Officer all have a condition requiring such a long leave. This would leave the U.S.S. Enterprise vulnerable and open to attack even though it is currently stationed in a quadrant with no known history of space travel._

_We would appreciate it if you would kindly disclose the reasons as to why Dr. McCoy deemed it necessary for all three of you to take the medical leave. This is in our best interest as the command team of the U.S.S. Enterprise is one of the main reasons as to its great success rate. If there are any problems, we would like to know as soon as possible in order to evaluate it and make an informed decision as to what should be done._

_We also understand that disclosing such information may be seen as a breach in patient confidentiality, but obviously, these circumstances are not normal. We would like to know if the ship has been compromised and how much of Starfleet and the Federation is in danger._

_Therefore, we would like to request the U.S.S. Enterprise to rendezvous with the U.S.S. Discovery as soon as possible at the starbase located in Beta Thalloid._

_From: The Admiralty_

Jim cursed. The probably had spent the last half of the week trying to word it perfectly to make it seem innocent to the untrained eye, but Kirk knew better. They were trying to get as much information as possible to try to oust them. After all, they have wanted to ever since they announced that the three of them were bonded.

While they certainly would never question the CMO's opinion, they would question it if it gave that long of a leave to a group of three highly ranked officials who happened to be bonded.

Hell. This wasn't how Starfleet was supposed to work. This wasn't how the Admiralty was supposed to work.

They want to force that information out of them even if it breaches patient confidentiality. They didn't care about their privacy; they wanted their answers and results. They wanted to find any flaw in McCoy's reasoning to hold over his head. They wanted to find any reason to deem Spock invalid and unfit to be the First Officer and Chief Science Officer of the Enterprise despite his high success rating.

The Admiralty probably knew that this wasn't a danger to the rest of the crew or beyond. They probably even knew what was going on with Spock, but they just want to get them to admit it out loud to them. They want to be able to keep this on record.

Kirk exited the bathroom and looked at the two of his lovers longingly. McCoy should be waking up any time now, but he knew that the doctor had made sure that the Vulcan would remain unconscious for a little while longer. Oh, how he envied them for being able to sleep. He walked into the hallway and started towards the bridge.

He supposed that he should set their path for Beta Thalloid anyway. The Admiralty hadn't given him any orders on what to do with their current mission, but they had said 'as soon as possible.' Luckily, that starbase was a little ways away, so he could ask Nyota what the hell he should say.

He hoped beyond hope that she'd have the answers as she usually did.

"Welcome back, Captain." Scotty clapped him on the back as Jim relieved him from the con. "You all right?" He was concerned.

Jim nodded. "Yes, Scotty. McCoy and I are back today, and Spock will be coming back tomorrow."

"If you don't mind me asking, what was wrong with ye?" He looked worried.

"Nothing that couldn't be fixed." He reassured him before sitting in the big chair.

Scotty shrugged but didn't say anything.

"Sulu, set course for Beta Thalloid." The Captain officially stated.

Sulu frowned. "Yes, sir."

Uhura raised an eyebrow. "What for, Captain?" She stressed the last word.

"The Admiralty would like to rendezvous with us about the medical leave." Jim grimaced.

"Now, why would they do that?" Scotty frowned.

Chekov answered. "They might find it suspicious. You know, three commanding officers all at once, and one is a Wulcan!" He shook his head. "Though, that shouldn't make a difference."

"You're right, Chekov." Kirk responded to him. "I do believe that is what they are questioning."

Nyota narrowed her eyes. "But they can't do anything if it is medical leave! Medical leave is medical leave." She was aware that they were specifically targeting them for some reason.

"That is also correct, but that would not make much of a difference, I'm afraid." He admitted.

Uhura straightened her back. "Just say that it is private, personal. They can't delve into your medical files without your consent."

"They might override that. They said that it was concerning, and they wanted to know if there is danger to anyone else onboard the ship." Kirk brought up.

Sulu questioned, "Well, is there?"

"Nope." He popped the 'p' hard.

"Then, they shouldn't have anything to worry about." He grumbled.

"Exactly." The Captain looked at the screen. "That's enough for now. You all can meet me in Rec. Room 4 at 1800. There are a lot of, ah, new developments that we must discuss."

"Yes, Captain," chorused throughout the room.

Jim leant back. So, he'd be meeting up with the U.S.S. Discovery? Interesting. He couldn't help but feel as though he had heard that specific ship recently in some very private conversation. He couldn't exactly pinpoint which conversation or who was speaking to him though. It was on the tip of his tongue.

He tried not to feel guilty, but it didn't work. Where had he heard of the Discovery before? Not in a classroom, of course. Everyone knew about the war with the Klingons, but he couldn't help but get a feeling that he should know more.

He would have to talk to his t'hy'las about that later. You see, he often got these feelings that he had a deep emotional connection to a place or that he should know something he didn't, and sometimes, it turned out to be Spock or McCoy having that knowledge or connection. This could be one of those times.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments make me happy. :) Again, I apologize about the accents. I can hear them in my head, but I have no idea how to write them out.  
> I was thinking about putting Michael in; what do you guys think?


	4. Beta Thalloid

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The meeting with the Admiralty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own anything, so sorry if I mess up any characters or their accents. I can hear them in my head, but I have problems writing them out.

Kirk had never been more relieved to have Spock back on the bridge. They were approaching Beta Thalloid, and the Captain knew for certain that they would need the command team of himself, Spock, McCoy, and Scotty to meet with the Admiralty. Did that mean they should tell him exactly what was going on? After all, he would be helping them explain their reasoning and defend themselves if it was necessary.

He furrowed his brow and quickly typed out a private message that would be sent to both Spock and Bones on the matter. He noticed Spock pause while looking at his sensors and open the message he sent.

 _CaptainSexyPants:_ _U guys think we should tell Scotty what happened?_

_Don'ttalktome: Why_

_CaptainSexyPants: Cause he's coming with us to Beta Thalloid....I thought it would be a good idea for him to know what was going on, so he can help us and all....:)_

_Cmdr. Spock: His reasoning is logical, doctor. However, may I ask that we only share the basics?_

_CaptainSexyPants: Thx, Spock. ;) And sure thing_

_Don'ttalktome: Y'all are going to give me gray hairs, I swear._

_Cmdr. Spock: Are you sure that we are the cause? I heard that it is common amongst humans your age due to the shortening of their telomeres._

_Don'ttalktome: Jesus, hobgoblin, I was merely saying that y'all are stressing me out! Shouldn't you understand that, being Vulcan and ever so logical and all?_

_CaptainSexyPants: XD_

_Cmdr. Spock: Specify._

_Don'ttalktome: Specify what????_

_Cmdr. Spock: What do you mean by 'all?'_

_Don'ttalktome: You know exactly what I meant. Stop pretending to be ignorant._

_CaptainSexyPants: XD_

_Cmdr. Spock: From what I have gathered, it has no meaning or purpose beyond suggesting further multiplicity of your argument. You are merely trying to include more reasons as to why I should know the specifics to your biology._

_CaptainSexyPants: Savage._

_Cmdr. Spock: I am under the assumption that we are in fact going to inform Scott of some of the information. Is this correct?_

_CaptainSexyPants: Yaaaaaas Spock_

_Don'ttalktome: Whatever, I got a patient, and y'all should be working._

_Cmdr. Spock: Very well._

_CaptainSexyPants: Peace out and see you later ;););)_

Kirk glanced at the screen again. Nothing has changed, but they were slightly closer to Beta Thalloid.

"Scotty, can you meet with Spock, McCoy, and I in Conference Room 4 after this shift?" The Captain swiveled his chair over to see the Chief Engineering Officer.

"Aye, Captain." Scotty flashed him a small smile before continuing on with his work.

"Thank you." Jim turned back to the screen and stared at the stars as the whizzed past at warp speed. God, he loved space.

However, he could also make out the faintest whispers of "Oooh, Scotty's in trouble with the Keptin..." and "What do you think he did?" from the obvious suspects.

The Captain cleared his throat before saying good-naturedly, "Scotty's not in trouble Chekov, Sulu." He nodded his head at the both of them as he said their names.

He took pride in his actions when he saw the other two blush deep red.

The time flew by far more quickly than he would have liked. They became closer and closer to Beta Thalloid and closer and closer to when they would have to come up with some miracle explanation for their leave that they knew the Admiralty wouldn't accept anyway. They had been trying to get any reason to demote, ground, or discharge Spock for the longest time. Surely, his Pon Farr couldn't mark the end of his career, right? It was a natural biological process and not his fault.

Jim had a shaky feeling that it still wouldn't matter unless they brought in Ambassador Sarek. He hadn't wished for Spock Prime to still be alive this hard for the longest time. It was hard when he passed away, but he eventually found a way to move on.

In the conference room, Bones, Scotty, Jim, and Spock merely sat there for about a minute. Spock, of course, was waiting for the Captain to start, but the rest just sat their awkwardly.

"So," Jim rubbed the back of his head while laughing nervously. He didn't know how to phrase this to leave out any of the information his First Officer wasn't comfortable with sharing. "I guess you're wondering why you're here?"

"In all honesty, Captain, I think I know. It's about Beta Thalloid, aye?"

The Captain confirmed this. "That's right. We're going to need your help keeping the Admiralty from harassing us, mainly Spock though, too much."

"Aye, Captain." Scotty nodded seriously. "I cannae say that I like how they treat ya, Spock."

He blinked. "I'm gratified."

The Chief Engineering Officer gestured with his hands a bit. "Now, what's this all about?"

The Captain turned to the CMO, not really wanting to have to figure out how to explain this to him.

"Dammit, Jim." He straightened. "Now, you better tell me if I start blabbing too much, understand you hobgoblin?"

"Affirmative."

"Great." Bones turned to Scotty. "Spock here needed us to be out for that long to help him through something that all Vulcans go through every seven years once they become of age."

The other man looked confused. "So, are ya telling me Mr. Spock wasn't a grown man until then?"

"No, he was capable of making decisions all right even if they're a pain in my ass." He cursed a bit. "I'm just saying that he wasn't...mature until then."

Scotty cocked his head to the side. "Sorry, but I don't understand."

"Dammit." Bones bit his lip. "Spock?"

The First Officer turned to the confused man. "I was already mentally mature and capable of making decision, but I only reached full sexual maturity recently."

Scotty hesitated. "Really? I thought you were shagging those two?"

"While normally you should not be concerned with that information, I was capable of making those decision and partially sexually mature then. It was something else that recently developed." He explained without saying specifically what it was.

The other understood. "Oh, okay. What else do I need to know?"

Jim took the lead on this one. "Oh, just the information that Spock didn't do this purposefully, and it is natural to his species should be good. Um...maybe just be aware that most of the Admiralty really hates him for being Vulcan?"

"Well, I already knew that." Scotty shook his head at the reminder.

Spock added on to his human lover's statement. "I believe that the information that it would have killed me if the doctor and the Captain had not stepped in and taken a long leave as well would is also valuable for our argument."

"It coulda killed ya?" Scotty looked worried. "You all right?"

"Affirmative."

Jim didn't sleep well that night. He tried not to toss and turn very much, but he knew that he was annoying Bones by being up as well. Spock meditated most of the night, citing the evidence that Bones had hypoed him into sleeping for far too long during his leave to avoid the doctor's wrath.

The next morning, he granted the majority of the officers on board the Enterprise shore leave while the four of them entered a room full of Admirals. Jim himself had never met these ones in particular and didn't know any of their names, but he knew that they were not any of the good ones.

"Good morning. Please sit down." One of the female admirals said with a sickly and false smile.

Kirk sat down in one of the middle chairs with Spock and McCoy next to him on either side. Scotty sat next to Bones.

"If you need a recap, I will remind you that you are here concerning the length of the medical leave taken by Captain Kirk, Dr. McCoy, and Commander Spock. Normally, we would not become involved in this, but we are concerned over what caused the majority of the Enterprise's command team to require such an extended leave." Admiral Hollingsworth started.

Jim already knew that he hated the guy. "I'm afraid that that information is private, Admiral." He didn't flash his cheeky grin, knowing that this was an incredibly serious situation, and his charm would not do his lovers any favors.

"We understand that patient confidentiality is very important, but as this affected you three, it is necessary to know the exact cause. We need to prevent this from happening to any other ship." Hollingsworth continued, his mustache moving up and down as he spoke aggressively.

Scotty crossed his legs under the table. "Well, ya don't have to worry about that, Admiral."

"And why is that?" Admiral Takano inquired.

"The condition that I required medical leave for happens to every Vulcan, but it does not affect any other known species." The First Officer answered.

Hollingsworth narrowed his eyes and leant forward. He had an incredibly red face, and Jim couldn't help but notice it. "What do you mean: it happens to every Vulcan?"

"I believe you are capable of understanding my words perfectly, Admiral." Spock raised an eyebrow.

"Don't get mouthy with me, Commander. You saying that you got leave because of something completely natural?" He snarled, a strange look of glee filling his face.

"Affirmative." The First Officer answered this truthfully, knowing that they had dug a hole around him.

The Admirals were quiet for a moment.

"Why should you all get medical leave with absolutely nothing wrong with you while there are people working their asses off on your ship?" Hollingsworth looked like he was enjoying this.

Bones took over. "While it was completely natural, it was still plenty dangerous and deadly."

The light dimmed in the Admirals' eyes.

"Explain." Takano frowned. "How would a species evolve to form a trait that would kill everyone?"

The CMO shrugged. "Beats me, but I think it has to do with their logical stubbornness. They simply wouldn't do it without motivation. Would rather be doing something more logical, I guess."

Hollingsworth narrowed his eyes. "And what wouldn't they do?"

"I'm sorry, Admiral, but I'd be at risk for losing my medical license if I answered that question." Bones responded.

"We've already told you that these circumstances require you to be complete." A new Admiral by the name of Gates reminded.

The Captain intervened. "We've already told you all that you need to know, Admirals. It only affects Vulcans, so no other species is at risk. Every Vulcan knows what to do when this time comes."

"And why is there no record of it?" Takano pressed.

"Vulcans are very private people. It is sacred to their culture and generally not something outworlders would know unless they needed to be involved in it. That's why Scott over there doesn't know much." Kirk declared.

Hollingsworth's mustache vibrated as he spoke. "Why shouldn't the Federation be aware of it? What would happen if this time comes when a Vulcan is isolated and unable to do what is necessary to keep them alive?"

"A Vulcan would not be so unwise as to be away from their bond mates when the time comes." Spock coolly defended though Kirk could tell he was getting irritated.

"Then, why did you, a Vulcan, allow yourself to be in deep space when this time comes?"

"I was not away from my bond mates." He simply replied.

Gates fiddled with her watch a bit. "Why was it necessary for Dr. McCoy and Captain Kirk to also have leave if this only affects Vulcans?"

Hollingsworth looked victorious for a moment.

"As we already said, it was necessary for us to be with Spock to keep him alive." The Captain defended. "We had to take leave as well to help him and keep him alive."

"Then, why did Commander Spock have a leave that lasted longer than yours?" Takano inquired.

Bones stepped up to the plate. "After the time was finished, we no longer actually had to be there, but he still had to recover from it." The doctor refrained from calling him a 'hobgoblin' in front of the Admirals.

Hollingsworth grumbled for a bit. "Very well. There is nothing we should presently be concerned about, but if something else happens within the next six months, I would like to inform you that we will send someone on board to watch you and evaluate the Enterprise's crew."

Jim's mouth went dry. "Understood, sir."

"Dismissed."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments make me happy. :) If anyone has an opinion on something they'd like to happen, please tell me!
> 
> I made up the Admiralty btw


	5. Logic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spock is hiding something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own nothing, so sorry if I mess up characters or accents. Vulcan pregnancies are going to be different than the human version in this fic.
> 
> SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING RECENTLY I WAS INSTITUTIONALIZED FOR DEPRESSION, ANXIETY, AND THE RESULTS OF SEXUAL ABUSE
> 
> #me too

Spock frowned as he leaned over a sensor. He had been having more and more problems concentrating ever since he left the meeting with the Admiralty. Surely, it would be logical to report this?

After all, he had been unable to pinpoint the cause of this during meditation. He had meditated every night to the point where his lover Bones threatened to hypo him to get him to sleep, but Spock had refused. According to the information he gathered in meditation, his body was healthy. Nothing was going on that was not supposed to be. Perhaps it was psychological? That might be something to report.

No, he was not considering all of the factors. If something else went on his medical record, the Admiralty would most definitely send a person who was probably prejudiced to the Enterprise to make sure that everything was functioning properly. If he were to not report it, however, no one would know, so the Admiralty would not send anyone. The Enterprise as a whole would be able to function better.

The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few, so the Vulcan decided that it was best to simply resolve this issue on his own. That did mean, however, that he could not let his thoughts or his feelings slip through the bond to either of his t'hy'la since they definitely would put his own well-being over the well-being of the entire starship.

He snapped out of his thoughts and forced himself to look at the sensor again. While more difficult than usual to concentrate, he was eventually capable of taking accurate readings. 

Spock assumed that his efficiency rating would start to go down if he could not identify and resolve his problem.

"What do we got, Spock?" He thankfully heard the Captain the first time. It would be nearly impossible to keep this from him and Bones as is, but if he did anything to warrant their suspicion, he would be incapable of defending the Enterprise from the Admiralty. It was his fault that they were pressuring them anyway.

"High levels of gamma radiation detected in the quadrant ahead, Captain. Adjusting our set course one light year in either direction would be advised." The First Officer did not look up as he reported his findings.

Kirk nodded and faced the screen. "Sulu."

"Yes, Captain." He adjusted their course.

Despite being just as long as any other shift, the Vulcan felt as though this one dragged on and took a long time even if he got a fraction of his usual work done. That would be difficult to keep away from Jim as well; would he have to put in extra hours? But that would alert them as well.

Spock decided that he should put in the extra work. If he were to be caught eventually, he might as well contribute more data to Starfleet.

Eventually, Jim stood up and cracked his back while stretching. "I think that's enough for today, guys."

He waited for his Vulcan t'hy'la to stand before walking out of the room.

"Hey, Spock." Jim began conversationally. "You know, I was thinking that maybe you and Bones might want to watch a holo with me later in our room?" 

Spock glanced at the human ever so briefly. "I have to report to the Science Wing to monitor and complete several timed experiments, Captain."

Kirk's face held a look of hurt momentarily before it was hidden. "Okay, that sounds important, Spock. Maybe some other time?" He added on hopefully.

The First Officer agreed. "Perhaps." He ignored the panging in his torso. What was that?

Was it an emotion? Bones once regaled him with a long tale of emotions just to annoy him, but the doctor did mention that when people feel emotions such as love or guilt they can feel it in their hearts. Maybe that was what Spock was experiencing. Was he guilty for turning down the Captain?

Perhaps all the other symptoms he was experiencing were also merely emotions. That could explain why his body was perfectly healthy, but why would he have these feelings? He should focus on those during meditation next.

"Just don't over work yourself, Spock. Bones and I are worried about that." Jim continued. "And it is Jim. We're not on duty."

Spock looked at him in question. "Explain."

"Well, you haven't been sleeping that much." The Captain started.

"I have been meditating."

Jim sighed. "Yes, but sleep is necessary for a Vulcan's health too, and you've been barely doing that."

Spock conceded. "Anything else, Jim?"

"Bones and I want you to sleep tonight." Kirk admitted.

"I will comply upon my return." The Vulcan replied.

The other man looked relieved. "Thanks. You know you can talk to either of us if anything is going on, right?"

"I am aware that communication is important to a relationship." Spock commented. He could not, however, share what was ailing him without inconveniencing the entire starship.

Jim breathed out. "Good. So, is there anything going on?"

"Nothing noteworthy is occuring." The First Officer reported.

The Captain nodded. "If anything changes, I want you to tell me."

"I will comply."

Jim parted from his lover. "I'll see you tonight. I think I'll go bother Bones." He winked and walked towards Sickbay.

Spock continued on his path towards the Science Wing. He expected to arrive in four minutes and thirty-seven seconds unless he was somehow distracted.

That distraction came when a sudden bout of dizziness combined with nausea caused the First Officer to stop in his tracks. Thankfully, he was walking in a rarely used hallway, so no passerbies saw his weakness. The Vulcan gripped the wall and slowly sank to the floor.

If his problems were not derived from anything physical, where could they have originated? Spock felt something that could be compared to having a cloud in his brain.

The Vulcan forced himself to take some deep breaths as he tried to find a fault in his mental controls. There was seemingly nothing wrong with them either, yet he was incapable of controlling his physical symptoms and emotions.

Standing, the First Officer forced his body to obey as he marched into the Science Wing.

He was experimenting on several different plants recently discovered on the planet Boratellia II in an attempt to find a vaccine for an illness that was plaguing the Truscopan people. Of course, this meant that the Medical Wing, more specifically Dr. McCoy, would be expecting results from him.

He checked his mental clock. There would be seven minutes and twenty-nine seconds until he had to check the response of the cells' secondary exposure to the virus when given four different vaccines. For now, he would construct a highly detailed outline for taking notes.

At least he would have done that if intense nausea had not overcome him. Spock gripped the edge of the table and breathed slightly.

"Ensign M'Da'R." Spock signalled to the Atellian.

"Yes, Commander?" She appeared almost instantly by his side, her tentacles waving around nervously in the air. 

The First Officer let go of the table. "If I do not return in five minutes and twenty-four seconds, continue with this experiment." He instructed her on what to do quickly.

"Yes, sir." M'Da'R nodded quickly.

The Vulcan forced himself to maintain his outward composure as he exited the room faster than he usually would. While he was in that same hallway, however, he received a message from Bones. It was not in the group messaging part between all three of them but private instead.

_Don'ttalktome: You better get your green ass down here._

_Don'ttalktome: You skipped your physical for Christ's sake._

_Don'ttalktome: I see you've read this, hobgoblin, so COME TO SICKBAY._

_Don'ttalktome: Don't make me come find you._

_Don'ttalktome: Or get Jim._

_Don'ttalktome: COME TO SICKBAY HOBGOBLIN._

Spock elected to ignore him and continued to walk towards the restroom, the feeling of nausea growing all the way.

Surely, he would not actually throw up? That is not something he had ever seen a Vulcan do. Unfortunately, however, his body decided that that would be beneficial somehow.

He forcefully expelled the contents of his stomach, most of it being acid.

The Vulcan stood after eighteen minutes and fourteen seconds of vomitting. Ensign M'Da'R would be in the process of completing the experiment at this time. After sufficiently cleaning himself, he exited into the hallway. Despite knowing that hope was an illogical thing, he hoped that that was only a one-time thing that he wouldn't have to deal with again.

Internally, he knew that this was illogical. If it occured at one point, it is only logical that it would occur again no matter how unpleasant it may be.

While walking back towards the Science Wing, he checked his messages once more. Every crewmember had one and could contact any other member no matter what their rank was.

He had just received a message from someone called  _M'Damn_. Presumably, this was Ensign M'Da'R. The Vulcan did not see the logic in having user set screen names. To him, it seemed unprofessional, illogical, and inefficient in identifying the crewmember who was making contact with you.

_M'Damn: Commander, I have the results of the experiment. Terran poppy seeds did not work along with Freeven point seeds, Orion maizut seeds, Andorian pick root, and Grolan tree nuts. However, the Blazen mantle root was able to provide some protection when combined with a weakened form of the virus._

Spock felt his heart beat pick up oddly enough. They had been working on this experiment for two months and fifteen days now, but they had not been able to create a working vaccine. The virus, even in its weakest form, always destroyed the cells in the culture, so it became evident that it would need something to stop it from killing the patient while still giving them immunity. It was a very odd case.

But now, it was solved. Of course they would have to go through trial runs, but Spock felt something in his torso again. Was this excitement? He did not know nor want to find out.

If it was an emotion he was experiencing, it certainly was more painful than anything. It continued to build up before eventually going numb in the area.

_M'Damn: Shall I send this off to be tested, Commander?_

Spock did not answer immediately as he was trying to figure out the source of all his ailments without meditation since that definitely was not effective. His heart merely felt numb, and there was slight pain spreading around his abdominal region. Was whatever he was plagued by worsening?

_M'Damn: Commander?_

The Vulcan bit his lip and sank to the floor again, a mere twelve feet from where he did the previous time.

He let out a very un-Vulcan like groan before he was claimed by darkness. That last thing he was aware of was his entire body slamming into the ground.

Meanwhile, Bones was pissed. He knew that his Vulcan lover had seen his message about his skipped physical, but what did that hobgoblin do? He ignored it anyway. That didn't exactly make the doctor's job any easier!

He had told the Vulcan that he would either find him himself or set Jim on him, and just as he typed that out, the Captain himself waltzed on into the Sickbay, probably to distract him some more.

"Hey, Bonesies!" Jim appeared at his side faster than he thought possible.

Bones looked as though he was getting a migraine.

"I got Spock to agree to sleeping." The Captain snooped around his office, looking for alcohol.

The CMO acknowledged him. "Yeah? Well, that green-blooded bastard is ignoring me."

Jim raised an eyebrow. "What did you do?"

"I asked him to come and take a physical! He didn't even respond!" Bones sighed.

"He said he was doing timed experiments in the Science Wing. Maybe he didn't have the time?" He offered.

Leonard shook his head. "No, he's trying to avoid it. I swear, there has got to be something wrong with him right now."

"We can go to the Science Wing and get him." Jim suggested.

Bones considered this. "Yeah, all right." They got up and moved to the wing.

The Science Wing was as crowded and chaotic as usual. Naturally, Bones hated it.

"Excuse me," Jim made an announcement to the section after he failed to spot his lover. "Does anyone know where Commander Spock went off to?"

Ensign M'Da'R stood up and spoke. "He left the room about an hour ago, Captain, and he obviously expected to be back soon since he told me to continue with the experiment if he wasn't there. I'm uncertain of his locstion, but I have been messaging him. The Commander has read them and is online, but he is not responding."

Kirk acknowledged her with a nod. "Thank you, ensign."

No one else knew anything more, so it seemed as though the Captain would have to track his messaging device. It wasn't something he liked doing as it was a blatant disrespectful action against one's privacy, but he really needed to locate his lover.

"He's in a hallway. Just standing there." Jim frowned and met the doctor's gaze.

"That ain't a good sign." Bones dragged the younger human to his signal.

The Vulcan still laid there, completely unconscious.

"Fuck." As soon as he saw this, he sprinted over, Jim slightly behind him.

Bones tapped him. "Are you okay, Spock?"

There was no response.

The doctor checked for life signs by checking his pulse and watching his breathing. "I can't figure out why he's passed out without a scanner." Bones grabbed his lover and pulled him into his arms as he stood. He was a lot heavier than the human personnel were.

Jim followed behind him quickly. "You can still figure out what is wrong, right?"

"Hopefully." Bones grunted.

While in the hallway, they received many concerned looks, and some asked what was going on. They were ignored to keep up their speed.

They did, however, pass Uhura, who followed them.

"What's going on?" She hissed, looking concerned for her ex boyfriend.

Jim shrugged and sprinted to keep up with his human lover who was plowing people who got in his way like snow.

"I ain't gonna have an overcrowded Sickbay." Bones called back. "You can wait outside, Nyota, but don't come in."

She accepted this and waited in the designated waiting area.

The doctor put his lover in a private room as he knew that he wouldn't want to be in the public area during a time of weakness. He started taking scans and compiling data.

It took about thirty minutes, but he eventually came up with a diagnosis. This caused him to merely stare at the screen, dumbfounded, for a little while.

"Bonesie? Earth to Bonesie. Whatcha got?" Jim gripped Spock's arm nervously.

Bones glanced at the Vulcan and then the human. "He fell unconscious from tachycardia affecting the-" He paused.

"Yes?" He looked worried.

"The twins." The doctor ran a tired hand through his hair.

The Captain's eyes widened. "The twins?"

"Yeah, you heard me. He's pregnant."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments make me happy, and I'll take suggestions on the babies now like gender, looks, etc!
> 
> And of course Spock is acting so un-Vulcan right now.


	6. Copper and Iron

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spock has a decision to make.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own Star Trek, so I'm sorry if I mess up a character.

The darkness was an art. It swirled within itself, disorienting the mind and clearing the senses. It was the start of everything and the end of everything, and it was impossible to navigate or escape. It clung to the Vulcan's body and dragged him down like thick molasses.

But the First Officer fought ever so hard to fight the overwhelming grip of the swirling black entity and climb his way out of unconsciousness. And through a lot of determination, he eventually succeeded in resurfacing into the waking world.

"Hey, Spock!" It was Jim. That meant that he had been discovered in his moment of weakness. But by who? And who else knew of this predicament? Surely, this must have gone on his record, and the Admiralty was notorious for keeping their word. They would have to send a surveyor for the Enterprise.

"Greetings." He blinked a bit.

Bones walked towards the bed. "Now, you are aware that you fainted, right?" He smirked. "Just like a damsel."

"I am aware of my loss of consciousness; you were not at the scene." Spock stared at the doctor.

He pursed his lips. "Whatever, hobgoblin. Now, do you know _why_ you passed out? Is there anything you've been hiding from us?" Leonard sent him a pointed look.

The Vulcan gained the impression that the two of them knew that something was going on with him. He had expected this; it was very hard to hide things from t'hy'la. "I am uncertain of the cause."

"Well," Bones accented that word before continuing. "After I carried your sorry ass here, I did some scans while you were out."

"I inquire towards the conclusion."

The doctor shifted awkwardly. "Now, if you were human, I'd say that you'd probably want to sit down, but-"

"I am neither Terran nor am I in a standing position. I do believe that you are stalling and request that you state the answer." Spock did not look amused. Then again, he never looked amused.

"You got pregnant during your Pon Farr." McCoy spit it out. "Twins. I believe you're experiencing these problems because one of them has iron based blood, and the fetus is rejecting the copper based blood and nutrients that your body is naturally supporting it with."

The Vulcan merely stared at the doctor for a very long while without saying a word. He was pregnant? That would definitely be reported to the Admiralty, but the incident would probably go on his record regardless of whether or not he kept the two. Therefore, the crew of the Enterprise would be burdened by whichever decision was most logical sounding, and it was impossible to reverse the flow of time to correct that error. On the other hand, he knew that the Vulcan race had suffered many losses in the destruction of their home planet, and even his father Sarek had spoken to him about reproducing either himself or providing his DNA to some other member of his species. They would be mostly human though, but according to the First Officer's logic, they would be better accepted among his race than he was due to the lack of a population. The Vulcans needed the young ones to continue on the species. And while they may be on the receiving hand of some hardships due to their blood, there was always the option of avoiding New Vulcan all together.

Twins weren't all that common among his species. They rarely occurred, and this might cause some questions towards the viability of his fertilization. They may challenge whether or not they were naturally conceived, and Spock knew very well that some of the higher class Vulcans cared about natural conception a lot. To be engineered was considered a flaw, and taking such methods were taboo. Spock as a hybrid himself would know. They would also bring in the argument that twins were relatively uncommon in both the Kirk family and the McCoy family. The Vulcan assumed that his lovers were curious as to that as well.

Regardless, the First Officer knew of the reason. While it was uncommon in his father's side of the family, twins were relatively abundant in the Grayson clan and thus in his genome.

If he were to bring them to life, would they receive hardships? Definitely. Did that make it not worth it? Not necessarily. Vulcan needed children, and Spock was aware that his lover Jim desired a family unlike his own past one. McCoy already had a daughter, and Joanna had always wanted a sibling. However, Bones had spoken of how one of the fetuses had iron based blood. Did that mean that Spock wouldn't be able to supply them with appropriate nutrients in the womb? He presumed so although he was not one hundred percent positive. It was possible that the fetus would reject him, but that was always possible. It was a much higher risk in this situation however.

"Have you absorbed that information yet, hobgoblin? Damn, your staring's getting a bit creepy." Bones snapped him back into reality.

Spock focused on his two lovers.

"You have a choice to make. If you need more time, you can have it." The doctor spoke more gently than normal. Odd.

"Specify."

"I think you already know what I'm talking about. Do you think you are going to get an abortion?" He spoke plainly.

The Vulcan averted his eyes momentarily, looked at Jim before returning his view to the doctor. "I require more information."

Bones nodded in understanding. "It would be a high risk pregnancy. I'm telling you that now since one of them have iron based blood. They need something you can't provide them with, so we'll need to transfuse some more iron based nutrients to that fetus. Additionally, your heart is rather close to your uterus, much closer than a human's is to theirs. This means that your heart rate and blood pressure could affect them."

Spock paused for a moment and thought this over.

"Just speak up if you make a decision about whether or not you want to keep them. It is your body." He reminded after a while.

A little bit later, the Vulcan focused back in on the two of them. He had made his decision.

"So, are you going to keep them?" Bones inquired.

"Affirmative." Spock acknowledged them both.

Jim burst out suddenly. "Really?" It was obvious he was excited.

"There are no problems with your hearing." Spock raised an eyebrow.

The Captain stilled. "I know." He was very bubbly right now.

Bones crossed his arms. "Well, I'll have to put that on your record which means that the Admiralty will probably send someone over."

"I have already considered that, Leonard."

"Of course you have, but I would have had to report something regardless since so many crewman saw you unconscious." Bones sighed. "I might as well just put that in as well. They....shouldn't advertise it too much."

"They shouldn't at all." Kirk grumbled.

The doctor turned to him. "Yes, but they don't really work like that, remember darling?"

"I know, I know." Jim huffed. "It's upsetting."

Bones agreed. "Of course it is. It's a breach of confidentiality. Why, I would love to show each and every member of the Admiralty where they should stick it..."

"Stick what?" Spock spoke curiously.

"Just...something. Metaphorical." The doctor waved him off.

Jim looked concerned. "But how are we going to support that fetus with the red blood?"

"That is a good question. We can try adding more iron to Spock's blood, but that would interfere with him too. We could always try transfusions." Bones sighed. "More research will need to be done."

The Captain twitched. "We can get the Science Wing on it!"

Leonard sighed. "Jim, if the Admiralty sends a person and they see that we are 'wasting' resources for our 'own gain,' you know that they will throw a royal hissy fit. We'll have to figure this out ourselves in our free time."

"We can get family to help, right? Like Nyota and Scotty and Chekov and Sulu?" Jim bit his lip in his anxiety.

"That would involve informing them of Spock's condition." The doctor turned to include the Vulcan once more. "Is that okay?"

The First Officer narrowed his eyes in confusion. "Why would I conceal their existence from other persons when they will know of it eventually?"

"Forget I asked." Bones sighed dramatically. "But, for your information, there are people who don't like hybrids. They don't like people like you and the babies for even existing, and if they get radical....we have a problem on our hands."

Jim crossed his arms. "Is everything all right with Spock, Bones?"

"Technically, yes." Leonard answered.

"And the babies?"

Bones nodded. "Right now, they are doing fine, but the one is quickly consuming the small amount of iron Spock has in him. We'll need to find a solution soon."

"Wait a second. I thought you said he was fine." He gestured to Spock. "If he's losing all of a single nutrient, isn't that bad? Even if Vulcans don't need as much iron?"

"I did say 'technically.' He should be fine, Jim. It might impede his work a tad, but I can get him some supplements." Leonard responded.

The Captain frowned. "Why couldn't we just get the baby supplements?"

"They amount that they would need would cause Spock to probably go comatose." Bones raised an eyebrow.

Jim made a frustrated sound.

"We'll have to pick this up tomorrow." The doctor sighed when he saw the time. "You need sleep." He pointed to Spock. "Since you promised Jim and all."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments make me happy. Any suggestions? :)


	7. Family Meeting

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jim calls a family meeting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own nothing! Sorry I haven't updated recently...PSATs suck even if they don't count
> 
> FORGIVE ME FOR MY ACCENT WRITING I SUCK AT ITTTTT

Nyota waited outside the quarters of three of the commanding officers for entrance. It was McCoy who answered her, but he didn't give her his usual welcome. Instead, he ushered her inside rapidly as if he was worried that someone might see. Was someone watching them?

She was the last one to arrive. Sulu and Chekov were playing a board game she had never heard of, Scotty was doing Solitaire, and Spock was updating his PAD. Jim, however, was pacing the room nervously. Something was definitely wrong.

"Nyota's here." Bones hissed to Jim to get him to stop moving before sitting on the bed.

The Captain jumped out of his fuzz. "Okay! Everyone's here. I'll bet you're wondering why I asked that you come here."

"Aye." Scotty shuffled his deck of cards.

"Well, um," Jim looked to Spock, checking to see if he wanted to speak. He was still looking at his PAD, showing little interest in speaking. Then again, he never does. He supposed that it would be illogical for any one person to speak, especially when there were others more qualified than him. "Actually, Bones here could probably explain this better."

Bones shot his human lover a nasty look. "I might as well be blatant then. The hobgoblin's pregnant."

Chekov gasped. "Really? Mister Spock is pregnant? Congratulations!" He turned to face the First Officer.

He briefly looked up. "There is nothing to congratulate for I had no involvement in the process."

"But you had to." He looked confused. "Otherwise, there would be no baby."

"Babies." Bones coughed.

He looked delighted. "Twins! You must have been involved, Mister Spock."

"Pon Farr was involved. I did nothing out of the ordinary." Spock corrected.

Jim rolled his eyes. "Anyway, that's only the beginning of why we called you here."

Nyota focused on him suddenly. "Why? Is there something wrong?" She narrowed her eyes.

"First of all, the Admiralty will probably be sending some watchdog to be nosy." Bones frowned deeply. "They already don't like us."

"Aye. We were walking on thin ice last time we met with them." Scotty agreed. "Do you think they will do anything?"

The doctor shrugged. "Hopefully, no. But Admiral Hollingsworth will probably be the one to send them over, and you know how notorious he is for hating anything not human."

Sulu nodded. "Yeah, I don't know how he could be Admiral while being so xenophobic..."

Bones brushed that off. "That's a topic to discuss another day. I meant that he'll probably also send someone with similar views, and that wouldn't be good for us."

"They might get radical." Nyota commented.

"Yes." He gestured to her. "And we don't want no hoity-toity bastard coming in our business and threatening us, understand?"

"Yes, sir!" Jim mockingly saluted with a big grin on his face.

Bones flipped him off.

"But how can we stop that?" Chekov furrowed his brow. "We cannot ignore the Admiralty. The Enterprise would be taken away!"

Jim agreed. "This is true. I was just thinking that maybe Spock shouldn't be alone with whoever he sends? Who knows what that guy might do."

Spock glanced up again. "I question the efficacy of that."

"Why?"

"It would hinder others from doing their work." The First Officer explained. "Which would, in turn, give the surveyor something else to focus on."

The Captain thought for a moment. "Well, you're on the Bridge most of the time with us anyway I suppose."

"He's usually the only one in the Science Wing." Sulu brought up.

"I can take him off of that." Jim had an idea.

Spock raised an eyebrow. "I do not know of a reason for-"

"Dangerous!"

"Jim-"

"Harmful chemicals!"

"I do not-"

"Not good for you right now!" He crossed his arms and smirked.

"He's right, hobgoblin." Bones reminded.

If Spock had human emotions, he might have called this one frustration. "Very well."

Jim let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Ever since Spock has told them that he was going to keep the twins, he had felt so light and elated, but at the same time, he was worried about how his Vulcan lover would react when they slowly took away his work and responsibilities. Now that a small portion of it was taken away, a portion of the weight was lifted from his shoulders.

"You'll have to assign a substitute CSO while you are out." The Captain reminded.

"I am aware of the regulations involved in these circumstances."

"I know. Just checking."

Spock raised the eyebrow yet again. "It is illogical to check when you already know it to be true."

"It is illogical not to check because you might be missing something." Jim argued.

"The time would be better spent on a different task to increase efficiency." The Vulcan mentioned.

Bones cut in. "Time would be better spent if we were doing something other than arguing over logic right now! Spock, shut your trap! Jim, don't wage pointless wars you have no chance of winning."

"I don't believe in no-win situations." The Captain commented.

"I'm surrounded by children! I don't care right now!" The CMO huffed. "We still have more things to discuss."

"Like what?" Nyota focused her attention back on them. She had drifted during their argument.

Bones sighed. "One of the twins is green blooded and the other has red blood." He groaned.

Sulu winced. "I'm assuming that is causing problems then?" He had a feeling he already knew the answer to that one.

The doctor nodded. "Yes. The one with red blood needs iron, so they are quickly draining all of the iron that Spock has in his system and is still lacking. If we give them as much as they need, we could potentially make Spock go comatose."

Scotty bit his lip. "And you need help finding a solution?"

Bones confirmed this. "Yeah. We can't ask the Science Wing since the Admiralty might see that as a misuse of power, so we thought that we could trust you guys, God help us." He looked like he just signed his death warrant.

"We will help!" Chekov announced.

And so they did.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments make me happy! Any suggestions are welcome.


	8. Gerald Johnson

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There is a new addition to the Enterprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own nothing! I apologize for my accent writing in advance.

Jim grimaced as he opened the latest message sent from the Admiralty. Obviously, they had checked for any updates in any of their medical records and found some.

_To Cpt. James T. Kirk,_

_We have been informed of Cmdr. S'chn T'gai Spock's pregnancy, and while we would like to convey our congratulations, it also goes against the agreement we made on Beta Thalloid. Due to this, the Admiralty will be sending a surveyor, Gerald Johnson, on board the U.S.S. Enterprise to monitor and evaluate the actions of the crew and command team. He will be waiting at the starbase in the Veta region in exactly four star days, so make sure that the ship is there to welcome him aboard._

The Captain made a frustrated noise as he threw his PAD across the room. Huffing, he sat on the bed and crossed his arms. In all honesty, he knew that this would be coming soon, but that didn't stop it from being a huge inconvenience on the entire ship.

Gerald Johnson. The name sounded familiar, but unfortunately, Kirk couldn't place it. Had they been at the Academy at the same time? It was possible, but he wasn't too sure. Nevertheless, that did not stop him from being untrustworthy of the many. He had been sent by Admiral Hollingsworth no doubt, and that meant that he had passed whatever test the Admiral had thrown on him. Knowing Hollingsworth, he had probably selected an individual indoctrinated with his xenophobic beliefs.

Wonderful. Jim groaned, not wanting the surveyor to come aboard the starship. The man would definitely make all their lives a living hell, but it would harm Spock especially even if he didn't mention it. On top of that, his First Officer continued to be tight-lipped about which member of the crew had been harassing him. Jim couldn't help but think it was one of the newer members of the crew since he trusted all the others.

After Altamid, the crew of the Enterprise fully realized how many they had lost and how few bodies they had to provide to the grieving families. Kirk was surprised to see so many new smiling faces on board after the ship was replaced; what sort of sane person would want to join the crew of a ship incapable of staying out of trouble? They hadn't been through what the older members had, so Jim was a little less hesitant to accuse them.

Not that he would ever admit that of course, but it was for Spock.

But what if it was an older member? Jim couldn't help but consider the possibility. How long had this been going under the radar? Spock had only mentioned it recently and briefly, so the Captain didn't have much information. Maybe it had been going on for years. It might even preexist him.

However, Gerald Johnson was his primary concern at the moment. The Captain stood up and strode out of the room to the Bridge. He didn't need the Admiralty to get pissy if they weren't their in "exactly four star days" no matter how much he wanted to delay the inevitable. Relieving the other from duty, he took the helm.

"Sulu, plot course for the Veta region starbase." The Captain ordered.

Sulu nodded and changed the course. "At our current speed, we will arrive in five star days."

Jim bit his lip; that was too late. "How fast would we have to go to get there in four star days?"

"We would need to go at Warp 7." The navigator reported.

"Increase speed to Warp 7." He commanded, slightly annoyed at the fact. The Admiralty probably knew their location and speed based on how nosy they were of the Enterprise's internal affairs.

He brought his attention back to Johnson. Would he be a sinner or a saint as Bones liked to say? He hoped for a saint but expected a sinner, but he wouldn't be too quick to judge. Johnson might just be a normal person who was hired by someone with a bad agenda.

"Bullshit." Bones called him out while they were discussing this at night. He paused, waiting for their Vulcan lover to exit into the sonic showers before pulling out a bottle of whiskey that they really shouldn't have under Starfleet guidelines and regulations. Damn the green-blooded hobgoblin and his rules fixation.

"I'm just saying that we shouldn't be too quick to judge him." The Captain argued, crossing his legs.

The doctor sighed. "Of course, but you already know that Hollingsworth wouldn't have hired him unless he knew that the guy would make our lives living hell."

"He might not be as bad as we think he'll be." Jim pursed his lips.

"Yeah, well, that's not going to stop me from preparing for the worst, buttercup. You keep your optimism far away from me and my whiskey." Bones knocked his glass back and swallowed the burning fluid.

Kirk sighed. "Fine. Let's say that he'll be a bad guy."

"Well, he will."

"Yes, that is what we're saying, Bonesies. It would just be like any other shit we dug ourselves in, right? Like Khan? We'll just have to sort this out like we always do." Jim sat up a little straighter.

Bones looked pissed. "Did I not say keep your fucking optimism to yourself? Some of us here want to bathe in negativity."

"But am I right?"

"Technically." He rolled his eyes. "However, have you forgotten all of the lives those situations cost us?"

Jim's mood turned downwards. "Of course not."

"Yeah, well, I'm not willing to take any chances this time around. I want to have a vacated med bay by the end of this, ya hear me?" He pointed his cup to the other threateningly.

"If all goes to plan, it will be." The Captain reassured.

Bones raised an arched eyebrow of fuck you. "And what plan are you talking about, darling?"

"We find out how to keep Spock's iron levels normal," he started off.

"Uh huh," the doctor was staring at him in an unamused fashion.

Jim then continued. "And we keep Spock from being alone with Johnson!" He perked up.

"That's what we already had. It is no plan; how are we going to do anything of this damn shit?"

"By winging it!"

The doctor paused and put his cup down before raising the entire bottle to his lips and knocking it back for a few moments. "You did not just say that. You did not just say that. We will not be winging this at all. God, it is so obvious that you've never been a parent before now."

The Captain bit his lip. "Well, what are we going to do then?"

Bones put the bottle back to his lips. "I wish I knew, kid. You're generally the one who comes up with the hair-brained schemes that somehow work."

"With Spock's input."

"I knew that already, genius."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments make me happy! :)  
> However, there is something fun I want to try lol  
> Tag yourself I'm moody Bones XD


	9. Veta

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They go to the Veta Region

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own nothing, so sorry if anyone is ooc! Also i can't do accentssss

Spock's mouth was in a thin line as he examined the sensors on the bridge. The Enterprise was to collect Surveyor Gerald Johnson from the Veta Region in exactly ten hours and twenty-three minutes. Unfortunately, there was an obstruction in their path.

"Damn them," Bones grumbled. "They probably knew that that thing was in our way."

The Vulcan arched an eyebrow behind his human lovers' back. While it was possible that that was the case, they had not gotten evidence nor had they ruled out anything else. It was possible that the cloud had formed very recently.

"What is it, Spock?" Jim gripped the edge of his seat nervously. They couldn't afford to be late to this meeting.

"It appears to be a cloud of beta radiation, Captain." The First Officer reported professionally.

The Captain pondered on this for a little while. "Any chance we could go around it?"

"I don't think so...." Sulu frowned. "It is light years wide."

Chekov crossed his arms. "They must have known it was there." He turned around. "Those things just don't appear out of no where."

"Aye," Scotty agreed. "That cloud there musta taken something like a thousand years to form."

Bones groaned. "Why the hell would the Admiralty send an entire starship off into a cloud of radiation? Jesus, I thought they at least cared about their shit!"

"Maybe they want to prove a point?" Uhura suggested.

Kirk spoke up. "Regardless of the reason, we have to find a way to get through the cloud and to our meeting point. The cloud is too big to go around, so is it possible that we could go through it?"

The CMO coughed. "Go through it, Jim? I thought I had already heard the craziest thing I'd hear today! We can't go through that cloud; it is made of beta radiation!"

"It may be the only way." Jim frowned.

"It would kill every one of us." Bones disagreed. "I can't let you do that."

"Yeah, I know." The Captain bit his lip in concentration. "Is there any way to get rid of it?"

Spock raised his eyebrow once more. "Such an effort would take a large amount of time and resources that are not available to us."

He cursed. "Is there a way to protect us from it?"

Scotty's eye twitched. "Are you suggesting that we put the Enterprise into that?"

"It would be protected." Jim promised. "Otherwise, no."

The engineer looked thoughtful after this. "It is possible to protect yourself from the radiation. If we went quickly through the cloud with all of our shields up, it should protect us. There may still be some harmful effects however."

Jim groaned. He couldn't be late, but he really didn't want to risk going through the radiation cloud especially since one of his lovers was pregnant. The Captain had heard so many horror stories about birth defects as a result of the ancient disasters of Chernobyl and Fukushima. Obviously, he didn't want to kill his unborn children, and he didn't want to kill or give cancer to any of the crew.

It was obvious to him what the Admiralty was doing. They were playing a power move, trying to prove that they are still in charge of Kirk and the Enterprise. Morbidly, he realized what message they were sending. Either they could be late and lose their jobs or risk some lives, specifically that of the twins.

Meaning, the Admiralty either wants the twins dead or Bones, Spock, and Jim gone. They were reluctant to accept Spock as a hybrid himself, but now that he was going to have his own children, they were denying them.

Jim had to prove them wrong.

"Okay," The Captain ground his teeth. "Shields up all the way and just gun it, Sulu."

"Yes, Captain."

The shields went up, and the starship Enterprise burst forward at a speed Kirk had never been at. He believed that it was faster than the Enterprise had ever gone, and it was likely that it will never go this fast again. Unfortunately, the engines would probably have to be mended while they picked up Gerald Johnson, but the Admiralty didn't have to know the incredibly risk reason why, did they?

"Jesus, Jim." Bones's hand was gripping the back of his chair tightly as they traveled through the cloud.

They were out of it just as quickly.

"Okay." Kirk breathed a sigh of relief. "Shields down. Scotty, go check the shields and the engines for damage. McCoy, I want you to make sure that no one experienced any detrimental effects from radiation. Spock, scan for radiation onboard."

"Yes, Captain." Spock acquiesced and turned on that specific sensor. They were in the clear. "There is no beta radiation on the Enterprise, Captain."

"Thank God." Jim felt as though he nearly had a heart attack.

The First Officer turned back towards his sensors as he was suddenly assailed by a wave of intense dizziness steadily drawing from his energy sources. Kirk had ordered that they continue towards the meeting point at Warp 7 once more. The Vulcan bounced his leg distractedly as he attempted to regain control.

"Is everything okay?" Nyota asked.

Spock tried not to look surprised as he turned to her. "Everything is adequate." He responded.

"Are you sure? You never twitch or bounce your leg or anything." She checked.

The Vulcan focused on his leg and forced it to stop as another wave of fatigue rushed over him. "I am adequate." He replied.

"Just checking." Uhura looked incredibly suspicious.

Nevertheless, the Enterprise continued on their way to the Veta Region.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What do you guys think? Comments make me happy! :)


	10. Iron

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They search for a solution.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own nothing, so sorry if anyone is out of character.

The alpha shift crew stood solemnly as the surveyor Gerald Johnson boarded the Enterprise. He was alone, which was not odd in itself, but they would have assumed that the Admiralty would have sent back up in case things got violent.

The Captain himself was slightly more calm because of that. Less Admiralty agents around meant less people he had to keep track of; therefore, he could focus on things that actually mattered. For example, he could help his lovers find a way to save their red-blooded fetus.

"Greetings, Captain Kirk. I am honored to be aboard this vessel." Johnson spoke to him. Kirk doubted whether or not he was actually honored, but that was besides the point.

"I certainly hope you are satisfied with the accommodations we have prepared for you." Jim replied.

The surveyor agreed. "I'm sure I will be." He didn't meet eyes with Spock.

"Let me show you around, sir." Chekov volunteered and led the man away from the rest of the alpha crew.

Scotty rolled his eyes. "He was very uptight, aye?"

"Yes, Scotty." Kirk frowned. The surveyor had spoken as if he was reading from a script or as if he was being fed lines. He supposed it was something to look out for, but some people simply talked like that.

Currently, the alpha crew was not on the bridge; it was the gamma crew's shift. Since Jim had taken Spock away from the Science Wing, that meant that his First Officer was not on duty at that point in time. Neither was Jim.

"Let's go, Spock." He got the Vulcan's attention and made their way back to their quarters. That would be the most unlikely place for them to be spied on, and it was the safest to talk and prepare for their children.

The Vulcan followed his Captain all the way to their quarters, ignoring all the things his senses were warning him about. He was a Vulcan, so he did not need to succumb to any basic needs, did he?

Nevertheless, he continued to notice that a pain was beginning to grow in his cranial region, slowly getting stronger and stronger. His heartbeat was abnormal as well, seemingly erratic.

Of course, Spock remembered what had happened last time his heart behaved abnormally; he had passed out in the middle of an empty hallway. However, it wouldn't be right for him to reach out to the doctor at this time especially since the surveyor had just arrived. He couldn't allow himself to give him anything incriminating that could be used against his two t'hy'las.

Therefore, it would be best kept to himself. He could attempt to identify the source of his ailment on his own, and he did his best to raise his mental shields against his two lovers for now.

The Captain frowned and glanced at Spock. He had felt the change in their bond, but Jim wasn't quite sure what had caused it. Was it something Spock did or something Bones was doing? Maybe it was himself.

"What was that thing that just happened to the bond?" Kirk inquired.

The Vulcan would have cursed himself out if he was Terran. The pain in his head was probably affecting his cognitive abilities to the point where he was incapable of sorting through every possible outcome. His father would be ashamed.

"I have temporarily raised my shield in an effort to avoid distracting you and Leonard." Spock spoke as plainly as he could.

"What would be distracting?" Jim asked suspiciously.

The Vulcan continued walking. "Nothing major or anything that would need to be discussed here."

"But we could talk about it." He offered.

"You are correct. We are both capable of communication." Spock arched his eyebrow.

Jim was getting frustrated. "Spock, didn't I tell you that communication was the basis for a good and healthy relationship?"

"Yes, you have, but there are more important things at this time. To speak would indirectly cause the rest of the Enterprise to possibly be affected." The First Officer replied.

The Captain made a face. "Okay, now you are freaking me out, but I can assume it is about your health again. What is it, Spock?"

"I believe my iron supplies have been depleted." Spock decided to speak to his lover, not wanting to risk the Terran's emotions.

"Oh, I get it. You didn't want to have Bones do something right as Johnson came." Jim guessed. "Well, I could always go down there and be sneaky." He wiggled his eyebrows.

Spock raised his eyebrow again. "Specify."

"Well, you know, Bones surely wouldn't care if I came and visited him-"

"Negative. He in fact finds it irritating when you pester him relentlessly." The First Officer corrected.

Jim rolled his eyes. "Shush, I'm telling you my plan. Anyway, I could go down to the Sick Bay, talk to Bones a bit, and come back. Surely, they wouldn't notice is a few hypos went missing."

"I assure you they would."

"Well, Bones can cover for us." He spoke confidently.

"Leonard would need to provide a reason for the missing items, thus introducing the same problem you were trying to circumnavigate." Spock cocked his head to the side.

Jim paused. "You're right. Or....we could just get you to eat something with iron in it. How about that?"

"....Satisfactory." The Vulcan assumed that would be fine.

"Great! Now, we should probably come up with a more long-term cure for this." Jim frowned and stroked his chin.

Spock blinked. "This would be the 'cure' as you say."

"I suppose, but doesn't it still put both you and the baby at risk?" The Captain opened the closet door and took off the incredibly uncomfortable uniform they were forced to wear.

"It is an imprecise way to go about replenishing one's iron stores, but it works nonetheless." The First Officer sat down.

Meanwhile, Bones was in the Sick Bay enjoying a relatively slow time. No one was injured right now. No idiots in engineering sawed their arm off; no one started a fight with someone else (the one time engineering and command played Capture the Flag was brutal).

It seemed like the perfect time to get some good relaxing done, but of course, some son of a bitch had to ruin it for him.

"And this is the Sick Bay, Surveyor Johnson. As you can see, no one is injured right now." Chekov entered the wing with one Gerald Johnson trailing behind him.

As if the day wasn't bad enough, Spock had recently blocked him out again. That hobgoblin thought that he wouldn't notice, did he? Well, he was certainly going to get to the bottom of whatever the hell that green-blooded bastard was doing.

"Hello, Dr. McCoy." Johnson greeted. "You are one of the people I am supposed to keep a special eye on."

Bones rolled his eyes. "That's great. I'm so excited to have someone watching me all day." He spoke sarcastically.

The surveyor ignored him. "You, Commander Spock, and Captain Kirk are the three individuals who I have been tasked with keeping a close I on, but I do survey every crew member. It seems to me that you three have been doing some things recently that are not appropriate for a starship."

"We were saving Spock's life, and this was a result of our efforts." McCoy glared at the man with a fiery passion. "You can't just make Spock get rid of his babies, you know. That's just wrong." He stubbornly insisted.

Johnson dipped his head. "I acknowledge that Commander Spock has recently gone through a major life change, but appropriate decorum must be kept. Was the Commander coherent enough to consent during his...time?" He didn't know the proper name of it.

"Of course he was! Are you suggesting what I think your suggesting? Because that is not only ludicrous, but it is also rude and demeaning. The Captain and I would never do something like that." Bones narrowed his eyes.

Chekov was beginning to breathe faster and faster. "Um, Commander Spock is their bondmate, and he did explicitly give them both his consent."

Johnson let a breath out. "Very well. We'll see."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Suggestions and comments make me happy!


	11. Seminar

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Johnson notices some things are lacking on the Enterprise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own nothing, so sorry if anyone is OOC!

"Captain," Johnson opened the door to the conference room Jim was trying to work in. Key word being "trying."

Kirk looked up from the screen of his PAD. "Yes, Surveyor?"

Bones had told him about the incident that had happened in sickbay before and how Johnson basically accused the both of them of raping Spock, and needless to say, he had started being more wary of the man. That had made it clear that Johnson was on the attack, trying to find ways to kick them all out of Starfleet, and the three of them and the rest of their crew allied with them were on the defense.

"I have noticed some things that I find to be...lacking on board the Enterprise." He began plainly.

The Captain put the device down and suppressed a sigh. "I'm sorry to hear about that. May I hear what it is, so I can direct you to the appropriate crew member?" He tried to keep it civil.

"No, it isn't something that a different crew member would be able to help me with. What I picked up on was the lack of seminars on board the Enterprise."

"You mean like those mental health seminars we used to have to listen to in the Academy?" Jim frowned.

Johnson inclined his head in acknowledgement. "Precisely. Under Section 132, Paragraph 8, Subparagraph 3 of the Starship Procedure Agreement, it says that it is a necessity to have seminars often on numerous subjects including mental health, trauma from missions, working with crew members, and" he paused and looked up, "Sexual harassment."

Kirk sighed, knowing he was trying to trigger a reaction out of him. "I'm sorry to hear that; we'll schedule some right away. I, however, am interested in why you keep pressure Dr. McCoy and I about sexual harassment."

"It is the duty of every Starfleet officer to watch out for their associates, and I have gotten the inclination that the 'bond' you share with Commander S'chn T'gai Spock may not be as mutual as everyone else thinks it is." The surveyor responded immediately.

He leaned back. "Are you accusing Dr. McCoy and I of rape?" He demanded.

"I do not have enough evidence to support any accusation." Johnson didn't look discouraged. "Yet."

"And you think that you're going to find some?" The Captain challenged.

The other man leaned back in his chair. "I think that as surveyor it is my job to observe the workings of starships, and now, it is time for me to observe the Enterprise. We'll both see what I uncover, won't we?"

"Obviously." Jim furrowed his brow. "I request to see all information that you gather."

"I cannot accept that request. Everything I have goes straight toward the Admiralty, and then, I get about fixing the problem. It's my job, Captain." Johnson stood up. "And I have to go do it." He left the room.

Jim sighed heavily and practically collapsed in on himself. Why didn't Johnson just confront Spock with his accusations? It didn't make much sense to say to accuse people of such things without their consent or knowledge; plus, the entire issue would get settled a lot quicker.

He hesitated. Maybe Johnson didn't want it to be quick. He wanted to stretch his sexual harassment investigation as long as possible, enough time for the information to leave the Enterprise. Once it does, there would surely be a scandal, and there would be little to no choice but for the three of them to resign in disgrace.

He had to end this quickly.

That night, grumbling ensigns, lieutenants, lieutenant-commanders, commanders, and the captain all piled into the largest room they had. There was just enough people away to keep the ship running, but Johnson made it clear that he wanted as many people to attend as possible.

Kirk bounced his leg as he waited for it to start, sitting in the front row with the rest of the alpha crew. Since Johnson was on board, he had desired to run the seminar, and Kirk wasn't complaining about that. He hated doing seminars.

"Greetings, crew of the starship Enterprise. You are gathered here today to discuss a very important topic: sexual harassment in the workplace." He began.

The Captain sat up, hoping that Johnson wouldn't turn the entire thing into a misleading smear campaign against him. Sexual harassment was a real problem even in this day and age, and making up false accusations just to get rid of a couple officers would forever discredit others who were victimized.

A hand went up.

"Ah!" Johnson pointed to the young, yellow-shirted ensign. "Please state your name and rank before your question."

The Navorian bowed their head a little. "I am Ensign T'ahk'me. My question is: why are we doing this now? We've never done it before."

Murmurs of agreement rippled throughout the crowd.

The surveyor ignored them. "This starship should have always been doing it, but the command team had been avoiding it. Very surprising, indeed; everyone in the Admiralty thought that the First Officer would never forget such an important rule like this one. But perhaps he was...silenced by others who didn't want you all learning about how frequently and where sexual harassment occurs. Basically, we are here today because we need to learn the red flags and uncover and prevent abuse."

Spock arched an eyebrow. "To what rule is he referring?"

Jim recited the number in perfect clarity. "Have you heard of it?"

"I have, but only because it hadn't been signed into law yet." The First Officer whispered in return.

Bones was getting mad nearby. "You mean that we weren't even responsible for doing this, and he's still blaming us?"

"That appears to be so. I expect the law to be signed in approximately 3 months, 9 days-"

"That's enough, t'hy'la." Jim felt for Spock's hand and grabbed it.

Another ensign raised their hand.

"Yes?" The surveyor called on them.

"I'm Ensign Barbad, and I was wondering: what should be done about those who do not use protection?" Ensign Barbad had hailed from a highly-religious society with emphases on abstinence, but she herself was open to other contraceptives. She, however, believed that if someone got pregnant, they should be removed of command immediately and until their children become adults. "Obviously, having children on board the Enterprise would be a hindrance, and passing STDs on to someone else is basically assaulting their immune system."

Johnson clapped a couple of times for her. "Good question! What should be done for those who don't use protection? Those who put their primal desires over the efficiency of the Enterprise? Crew members who are either pregnant or parents already are distracted; they put themselves over the safety of their crew. The transmission of STDs must also be eradicated soon. And we all know at least one person who definitely didn't use protection." His eyes traveled to Spock and back. "As for what should be done about them, there are no real laws written in the Starfleet Code of Conduct. It is my personal belief that they should be grounded, and pregnant crew members should be removed from their post until their child reaches the age of maturity for that species."

Kirk bristled.

Johnson was going to be the end of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Comments and suggestions are appreciated!


End file.
